Public Health Call-in Day of Action!

In honor of National Public Health Week, MPHA is asking YOU to reach out to your state representative today to ask him or her to support public health funding in the FY 2015 budget!

The House will be debating the FY15 budget in the coming weeks. Funding for community-based public health programs is down nearly $55 million compared to FY 2009, so reaching out to your representative today is more important than ever. We need your help to make the case for continued investments in the essential public health services that we rely on daily but often forget about, such as indoor air quality, health inspections, communicable disease control, and food safety.

We hope you’ll join us in advocating for increased public health support. You can learn more about MPHA’s FY15 budget priorities here.

There are several different ways you can reach out to your representative – through the traditional call or email, or through social media such as Facebook or Twitter! To find your representative’s contact and social media info, click here. If you don’t know who your representative is, find out here. See below for sample social media posts, emails, and a phone script.

Please take a few minutes today to reach out to your representative and encourage him or her to support public health in the state budget.

Sample tweet: @Legislator’s handle Please support public health funding in the FY15 budget! It is crucial for Mass residents to be healthy and productive.

Sample Facebook post: @Legislator, Please support public health in the FY15 budget! Current funding is down $55 million compared to FY09. Maintaining or increasing funding is vital to the health & wellbeing of every Massachusetts resident!

Sample email:

Subject: Invest in Public Health in the FY15 Budget!

Dear Legislator,

As a constituent and public health advocate, I am writing to encourage you to support public health funding in the FY15 budget. The funding in the state budget provides for many essential services that we rely on daily, but rarely pause to think about, such as food safety, indoor air quality, health facility inspections, and communicable disease control. Current funding for community-based public health programs is nearly $55 million less than FY09, and continued or increased investments in public health are crucial to the residents of Massachusetts.

*Personalize your message: Use this space to personalize your message, by explaining your commitment to public health and why it’s important to you. If you would like to include specific budget requests, you can check out MPHA’s budget priorities here.

I urge you to support public health as you consider the budget in the next few weeks. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Your Name

Sample phone call:

Dial your legislator’s number, and give the receptionist your name and the brief purpose of your call (“Hi, my name is [your name], and I am calling about supporting public health in the budget). You will most likely be connected to a legislative aide. Repeat your name and address to the aide, and tell them if you are a constituent.

“Hi, my name is [your name], I am from [address], and I am a constituent of [Representative’s name]. I am calling to urge the representative to support public health in the state budget. The funding in the state budget provides for many essential services that we rely on daily, but rarely pause to think about, such as food safety, indoor air quality, health facility inspections, and communicable disease control. Current funding for community-based public health programs is nearly $55 million less than fiscal year 2009, and continued or increased investments in public health are crucial to the residents of Massachusetts.

If you have time, you can tell them why public health funding is important to you, or mention any specific parts of public health funding that you would like to see maintained or increased (see MPHA’s budget priorities here). You may also ask what your Representative’s opinion is. When you are finished, thank them for their time!